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R A Fenton

Publications and source records attributed to R A Fenton.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Adenosine A2a receptors increase arterial endothelial cell nitric oxide.

BACKGROUND: Adenosine is a potent vasodilator of vascular smooth muscle. Endothelium-derived nitric oxide (NO) elicits vasodilation. We have previously reported that adenosine stimulates the production of NO from porcine carotid arterial endothelial cells (PCAEC) via a receptor-mediated mechanism. This study was to determine whether adenosine also enhances NO production from human arterial endothelium and to define the involvement of adenosine A1 and A2 receptors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human iliac arterial endothelial cells (HIAEC) and PCAEC were harvested and cultured in dishes. NO production was evaluated with a NO electrode sensor which measured continuously real-time NO production. RESULTS: NO content of the medium bathing HIAEC and PCAEC was significantly increased with adenosine (100 micromol/L). Ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (NECA), a nonselective adenosine receptor agonist, and carboxyethyl-phenethylamino-ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (CGS-21680), a selective adenosine A2a receptor agonist, increased NO production by HIAEC and PCAEC with respective EC50 values of 3.32 and 6.96 nmol/L for NECA and 30.97 and 29.47 nmol/L for CGS-21680. Chlorofuryl-triazolo-quinazolinamine (CGS-15943; 1 micromol/L), an adenosine A1 and A2 receptor antagonist, and aminofuryltriazolotriazinyl-aminoethylphenol (ZM-241385; 1 micromol/L), a selective adenosine A2a receptor antagonist, inhibited the effect of CGS-21680. Chlorocyclopentyl-adenosine (CCPA; 1 micromol/L), an adenosine A1 receptor agonist, significantly depressed NO production by both HIAEC and PCAEC: This effect was inhibited by cyclopentyl-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX), a selective adenosine A1 receptor antagonist. CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrate that adenosine A2a receptors increase, and adenosine A1 receptors decrease, the production of NO by human and porcine arterial endothelial cells.

Adenosine↗

Effects of chronic adenosine uptake blockade on adrenergic responsiveness and left ventricular chamber function in pressure overload hypertrophy in the rat.

BACKGROUND: Increased sympathetic activity contributes to the progression of heart failure. Adenosine counteracts sympathetic activity by inhibition of presynaptic norepinephrine release and attenuation of the metabolic and contractile responses to beta-adrenergic stimulation. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the adenosinergic effects (uptake blockade) of dipyridamole may retard the progression of pressure overload hypertrophy in the rat. METHODS AND RESULTS: To verify that the administration of dipyridamole increases myocardial adenosine levels in the rat, epicardial adenosine concentrations were measured from 12 isolated, perfused rat hearts exposed to 10(-7) and 10(-6) mol/l dipyridamole. Adenosine concentrations were increased with both doses of dipyridamole. Also, 9 weeks of dipyridamole treatment resulted in decreased sensitivity to the adenosine A1-receptor agonist, 2-chloro-N6-cyclopentyl adenosine, suggesting that dipyridamole increases adenosine levels in the intact rat. In the second part of the study, rats were divided into either abdominal aortic-banded or sham-operated groups and were treated with either dipyridamole or saline. After 9 weeks of treatment, two-dimensional Doppler echocardiographic studies were performed and the adrenergic responsiveness to 10(-8) mol/l isoproterenol was assessed in vitro. The saline-treated banded group demonstrated concentric left ventricular hypertrophy, abnormal diastolic filling, increased wet lung weights and attenuation of adrenergic responsiveness. In contrast, the dipyridamole-treated banded rats exhibited more concentric geometry (higher relative wall thickness with similar left ventricular mass), normal left ventricular filling characteristics and preserved adrenergic responsiveness. Systolic left ventricular chamber and myocardial function, as assessed by stress-endocardial and midwall shortening relationships, were not significantly altered by banding or dipyridamole treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Dipyridamole treatment prevented the development of abnormal left ventricular chamber filling, preserved adrenergic responsiveness and appeared to attenuate detrimental chamber remodeling in rats with pressure overload hypertrophy.

Adenosine↗

Myocardial adenosine A1-receptor sensitivity during juvenile and adult stages of maturation.

In the heart, endogenous adenosine attenuates the beta-adrenergic-elicited increase in contractile performance via activation of adenosine A1 receptors. It has been recently reported that this function of adenosine becomes more pronounced with myocardial maturation. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether mature hearts possess a greater sensitivity than immature hearts to this antiadrenergic effect of adenosine. Isolated perfused hearts or atria from immature (ca. 23 days) and mature (ca. 80 days) rats were stimulated with isoproterenol (Iso), a beta-adrenergic agonist, at 10(-8) M and concomitantly exposed to increasing concentrations of 2-chloro-N6-cyclopentyladenosine (CCPA), a highly selective and potent adenosine A1-receptor agonist, from 10(-12) to 10(-6) M. CCPA at 10(-10)-10(-6) M dose dependently reduced the Iso-elicited contractile response more in immature than in mature hearts or atria. At 10(-6) M, CCPA reduced the Iso-elicited contractile response by 103% in immature hearts and by 55% in mature hearts. These effects of CCPA were attenuated by the adenosine A1-receptor antagonist 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine at 10(-7) M. In additional experiments, CCPA exhibited similar effectiveness in reducing the spontaneous heart rate of immature and mature hearts, an effect also mediated by activation of adenosine A1 receptors. Similar to CCPA, the adenosine A1-receptor agonist R-N6-(2-phenylisopropyl)adenosine reduced the Iso-elicited contractile response more in immature than in mature hearts, albeit with less effectiveness than CCPA. In agreement with these results, CCPA reduced Iso-elicited adenylyl cyclase activity more in immature than in mature hearts. Overall, in contrast with our original hypothesis, these results indicate that immature hearts display greater sensitivity than mature hearts to the antiadrenergic effect of adenosine A1-receptor activation.

Adenosine↗

Adenosine A2 receptor function in rat ventricular myocytes.

OBJECTIVE: This study was undertaken to investigate the functional significance of adenosine A2 receptor stimulation in a mammalian ventricular myocyte preparation. METHODS: Isolated contracting rat ventricular myocytes were employed to assess the contractile, adenylyl cyclase and cyclic AMP responses to adenosine receptor stimulation. RESULTS: In single myocytes the presence of A1 receptors was confirmed, as indicated by the A1 receptor agonist, phenylisopropyladenosine (PIA), reducing by 60 and 74% the inotropic response and activation of adenylyl cyclase, respectively, elicited by the beta-adrenergic agonist, isoproterenol. An A1 receptor antagonist, dipropylcyclopentylxanthine (DPCPX), prevented the antiadrenergic action of PIA. The A2 receptor agonist, carboxyethylphenethyl-aminoethyl-carboxamido-adenosine (CGS-21680; 0.01-10 microM) increased myocyte inotropy in a concentration-dependent manner, reaching a maximum of 41-45%. Ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (NECA), naphthyl-substituted aralkoxy-adenosine (SHA-082) and adenosine in the presence of DPCPX also increased myocyte inotropy, as evidenced by increases in myocyte shortening, duration of shortening, time-to-peak shortening, time-to-75% relaxation and rate of maximal shortening. The agonists, however, did not effect the maximal rate of relaxation. The A2 receptor antagonists, chlorofuranyldihydrotri-azoloquinazolinimine (CGS-15943) and chlorostyrylcaffeine (CSC), the latter selective for the A2a receptor, prevented the contractile responses elicited by the A2 agonists. Compared to the concentrations of A2 receptor agonists necessary to increase myocyte contractile variables, 3-12 times greater concentrations of the agonist were required to increase myocyte adenylyl cyclase activity and cAMP levels. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest the presence of adenosine A2a receptors in the rat ventricular myocyte that appear to be responsible for an increase in inotropy via cAMP-dependent and -independent mechanisms.

Adenosine↗

Myocardial adenosine A1 and A2 receptor activities during juvenile and adult stages of development.

Myocardial contractile responsiveness to beta-adrenoceptor stimulation is known to be reduced with maturation or aging. The present study was undertaken to determine the role of antiadrenergic A1 and stimulatory A2 adenosine receptors in the modulation of beta-adrenergic-elicited contractile performance of the heart at juvenile (approximately 25 days) and adult (approximately 79 days) stages of maturation. Isoproterenol, a beta-adrenergic agonist, at 10(-7) M produced a greater maximal increase in contractility, assessed as the maximal rate of left ventricular pressure development (+dP/dtmax), in immature than in mature hearts (104 and 80%, respectively), but produced a greater increase in venous adenosine concentration in the mature than in the immature hearts (738 and 277 nM, respectively). Isoproterenol at 10(-9) to 10(-8) M produced similar increases in contractility in the absence or presence of the A1 adenosine receptor antagonist xanthine amine congener (XAC; 0.5 microM) for both immature and mature hearts. In addition, XAC did not alter the isoproterenol-elicited contractile response in the immature heart during hypoperfusion induced by 50% reduction of coronary flow. However, in the mature heart, 10(-8) M isoproterenol elicited a significantly greater increase in +dP/dtmax during hypoperfusion in the presence (79%) vs. the absence (60%) of XAC. In both immature and mature hearts, hypoperfusion enhanced isoproterenol-elicited venous adenosine concentration by similar magnitudes of 76 and 72%, respectively. In further studies, the A2 adenosine receptor antagonist 9-chloro-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]-triazolo[1,5-c]quinazolin-5-amine (CGS-15943; 1 microM) reduced the isoproterenol-elicited contractile response of mature but not immature hearts during normal perfusion. These results suggest that myocardial adenosine modulates the beta-adrenergic-elicited contractile response of the adult heart via activation of both A1 and A2 adenosine receptors and that these functions of adenosine become expressed with myocardial maturation.

Adenosine↗

Endogenous adenosine reduces depression of cardiac function induced by beta-adrenergic stimulation during low flow perfusion.

High levels of norepinephrine in the heart are cardiotoxic resulting in contractile dysfunction and arrhythmic activity via beta-adrenoceptor mediated mechanisms. A low flow heart model perfused with physiological saline containing glucose and bubbled with an O2 gas mixture was used to determine whether adenosine, a nucleoside with antiadrenergic properties, could reduce the functional manifestations of catecholamine cardiotoxicity. Isolated rat hearts were treated with dipropylcyclopentylxanthine (DPCPX; 0.1 microM; A1 receptor antagonist) to block endogenous adenosine. In DPCPX-treated hearts stimulated with isoproterenol (ISO; 1 microM) during 45 min of low flow (0.5 ml/min) perfusion, the recovery of contractile function (ConF) at 15 min after the restoration of normal flow was 64% of control (before low flow) values as compared to 110% recovery of ConF in the absence of ISO. The incidence of arrhythmias observed upon restoration of control flow was increased by ISO when the action of endogenous adenosine was blocked with DPCPX. In the absence of DPCPX both the functional depression and arrhythmias induced by ISO were prevented in the presence of phenylisopropyladenosine (PIA; 1 microM; A1 receptor agonist). At 15 min after normal flow was restored. ConF in ISO-treated hearts with PIA was 53% greater than in the absence of PIA and presence of DPCPX. This enhancement of ConF by PIA was significantly reduced by DPCPX. By 30 min after flow restoration, these significant differences were absent. DPCPX reversed the PIA-induced reduction in arrhythmias observed upon restoration of normal flow. PIA and DPCPX alone in the absence of ISO, and ISO in the absence of PIA and DPCPX, did not result in altered ConF upon restoration of normal flow. These findings indicate that intense beta-adrenergic stimulation of the heart during low-flow perfusion in the absence of adenosine A1 receptor activity induces contractile depression and arrhythmicity subsequent to restoration of control perfusion. It is concluded that endogenous adenosine protects the heart against catecholamine toxicity via stimulation of adenosine A1 receptors.

Adenosine↗

Adenosine enhances nitric oxide production by vascular endothelial cells.

Adenosine per se is a potent vasodilator of vascular smooth muscle. Endothelial cells modulate vascular tone via the release of nitric oxide (NO), which also elicits vasodilation. This study was undertaken to determine whether adenosine could directly stimulate endothelial cells to enhance NO production, which could subsequently reduce vascular tone. NO production was evaluated in porcine carotid artery endothelial cells (PCAEC) and human saphenous vein endothelial cells (HSVEC) seeded on multiwell plates, grown to confluence, and treated with adenosine for 1 h. The bathing medium was collected, and the NO production was determined as reflected by the formation of NO2- and NO3-. NO production by PCAEC was significantly increased by adenosine in a dose-dependent manner, whereas there was only an insignificant tendency for an increase by HSVEC. The addition of the NO synthase competitive inhibitor, NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (NMMA), or the adenosine receptor antagonist, theophylline, prevented the increase in NO production by adenosine. The results suggest that adenosine stimulates, by a receptor-mediated mechanism, the production of NO by arterial, but not by venous, endothelial cells.

Adenosine↗

Fatal, generalized bovine herpesvirus type-1 infection associated with a modified-live infectious bovine rhinotracheitis parainfluenza-3 vaccine administered to neonatal calves.

Generalized bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) infection was diagnosed in six Salers calves from the same herd. The calves had received an intramuscular injection of modified-live infectious bovine rhinotracheitis parainfluenza-3 vaccine between birth and three days of age. The purpose of this study was to determine if the outbreak was associated with the vaccine strain of BHV-1. Analysis of epidemiological data and BHV-1 DNA for restriction fragment length polymorphism was undertaken. Multifocal necrosis in multiple organs was observed on pathological examination, and the presence of BHV-1 in tissues was confirmed by immunohistochemistry. Forty-three calves (aged birth to thirty days) were vaccinated over an 11-day interval. The 10 deaths recorded for vaccinated calves were clustered over a subsequent 14-day interval. Mortality in calves vaccinated between birth and three days of age was significantly higher than in nonvaccinated calves (chi-square test; p < or = 0.025), and this mortality was characterized by a greater age at death and duration of illness for vaccinated calves (t test; p < or = 0.001). The patterns of the restriction fragments, generated by six restriction endonucleases, of BHV-1 isolated from a necropsied calf and from the vaccine were identical, and different from that of a laboratory strain of BHV-1 (P8-2). These findings support the conclusion that newborn calves were susceptible to an intramuscularly injected vaccine strain of BHV-1, and that administration of an intramuscular modified-live infectious bovine rhinotracheitis parainfluenza-3 vaccine to neonatal calves may not be an innocuous procedure.

Alberta↗

Adenosine inhibition of beta-adrenergic induced responses in aged hearts.

Because adenosine has an antiadrenergic action in the heart, young (3-4 mo) and aged (18-20 mo) adult Sprague-Dawley and Fischer 344 rat hearts were perfused to determine whether interstitial adenosine plays a role in the reduced metabolic and mechanical responsiveness of the aged heart to beta-adrenergic stimulation. Interstitial adenosine was approximately twofold greater in aged hearts compared with young adult hearts, and 10(-8) M isoproterenol (ISO) further increased these levels. ISO increased myocardial adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate content, glycogen phosphorylase activity, and cardiac contractility by 83, 150, and 130%, respectively, in young hearts but only increased these variables by 45, 74, and 61%, respectively, in aged hearts. Sulfophenyl-theophylline prevented the reduced ISO-induced responsiveness of the above variables in aged hearts. Exogenously administered adenosine deaminase eliminated the reduced ISO-induced contractile responsiveness in aged hearts. The apparent activities of 5'-nucleotidase and adenosine deaminase were not significantly different in ventricular samples from young and aged hearts. These results suggest that the elevated interstitial level of adenosine exerts a greater antiadrenergic effect in the aged heart, rendering it less responsive to beta-adrenergic stimulation. The increased interstitial level of adenosine in the aged heart does not appear to be due to a difference in the activities of either 5'-nucleotidase or adenosine deaminase.

5'-Nucleotidase↗

Hypoxia enhances isoproterenol-induced increase in heart interstitial adenosine, depressing beta-adrenergic contractile responses.

Endogenous interstitial adenosine may protect the hypoxic heart by attenuating beta-adrenergic-induced contractile and metabolic responses, thereby reducing energy utilization. Constant-flow perfused rat hearts were used to study: 1) the effect of hypoxia on isoproterenol (ISO)-induced increase in interstitial adenosine, as estimated with epicardial surface transudates, and 2) the role of endogenous adenosine in hypoxic depression of ISO-induced contractile responses. ISO (1 nM for 10 minutes) in the normoxic heart increased transudate adenosine 114% from a pre-ISO normoxic value of 343 pmol/ml. ISO administered to the hypoxic heart increased transudate adenosine 357% from a pre-ISO hypoxic value of 797 pmol/ml. The absolute magnitude of the ISO-induced increase in transudate adenosine was 625% greater during hypoxia than during normoxia. This was associated with a reduction in the ISO-induced contractile response during hypoxia. In other experiments, with normoxia ISO (10 nM for 10 seconds) increased developed left ventricular pressure by 140 mm Hg, and the maximum rates of left ventricular pressure development and relaxation by 5,860 and 2,771 mm Hg/sec, respectively, above control values of 90 mm Hg, 2,250 mm Hg/sec, and 1,875 mm Hg/sec. Hypoxia reduced the three ISO-induced contractile responses by 50%, 56%, and 36%. However, 1,3-dipropyl-8-cyclopentylxanthine (5 x 10(-7) M), an adenosine A1-receptor antagonist, added to the hypoxic hearts resulted in only a 31%, 39%, and 9% reduction in the ISO-induced responses in developed left ventricular pressure and the maximum rates of left ventricular pressure development and relaxation, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adenosine↗

Fluorometric quantitation of adenosine concentration in small samples of extracellular fluid.

Adenosine is a naturally occurring nucleoside which regulates many physiological processes by interacting with adenosine-specific receptors. Knowledge of the extracellular adenosine concentration at the site of adenosine receptors on target cells is required for an understanding of mechanisms involving the action of the nucleoside. Samples of extracellular fluid which reside in close proximity to the surface of target cells are frequently small in volume. This report describes improvements in accuracy and reliability of a fluorometric assay designed for determining the concentration of adenosine in microliter samples of extracellular fluids. The utility of the assay is demonstrated by determining adenosine concentrations in interstitial and coronary effluent samples from normoxic perfused rat hearts. The assay also clearly detects changes in the interstitial and coronary effluent adenosine levels produced by isoproterenol stimulation or hypoxia. Thus, this assay is useful for determining the adenosine concentration in microliter samples of extracellular fluid and should facilitate investigations dealing with the functions of adenosine.

Acetaldehyde↗

Adenosine reduces the Ca2+ transients of isoproterenol-stimulated rat ventricular myocytes.

Adenosine in the heart attenuates the contractile and metabolic effects of beta-adrenergic stimulation. The effect of adenosine on changes in intracellular Ca2+ concentration [( Ca2+]i) elicited with electrical stimulation was studied in rat ventricular myocytes in the absence and presence of isoproterenol (ISO). Fura-2 was utilized as a Ca2+ indicator. Autofluorescence was determined, and in vivo calibration was conducted, for each myocyte. Phenylisopropyladenosine (PIA; 10(-7) M; 5 min), an adenosine A1 receptor agonist, had no effect on the Ca2+ transient magnitude (TM) or the rate of Ca2+ transient decline determined at 150 nM Ca2+(i) (RD150). ISO (10(-8) M; 1 min) in the continued presence of PIA resulted in a 16% increase in the TM, but no change in the RD150. Inhibiting the PIA with 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX; 10(-7) M; 3 min) in the continued presence of ISO plus PIA resulted in a further 51% increase in the TM and a 57% increase in the RD150. In PIA-treated myocytes, ISO-induced spontaneous high-frequency Ca2+ transients occasionally were observed after the inhibition of PIA by DPCPX. The results of this study suggest that adenosine attenuates myocardial contractile responses to beta-adrenergic stimulation, in part, by reducing the beta-adrenergic-induced changes in the Ca2+ transients occurring in the contracting ventricular myocyte.

Adenosine↗

Thallium stress testing does not predict cardiovascular risk in diabetic patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing cadaveric renal transplantation.

PURPOSE: This study assessed the usefulness of thallium stress testing as a predictor of perioperative cardiovascular risk in diabetic patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing cadaveric renal transplantation. Demographic factors influencing the exercise performance in these patients were also examined. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The medical records of 189 consecutive patients with diabetic nephropathy who were evaluated for cadaveric renal transplantation were reviewed. Thallium stress testing was the initial examination of cardiovascular status in 141 patients. An adequate examination was one in which at least 70% of maximum heart rate was achieved. A thallium stress test was normal if there were no ST segment depressions on the electrocardiogram and no perfusion abnormalities on the thallium scan. Forty-four patients underwent cardiac catheterization as the initial evaluation (Group C) and four patients underwent transplantation without a formal cardiovascular evaluation (Group D). RESULTS: Sixty-four of the 141 patients undergoing thallium stress testing had an adequate and normal examination (Group A). The incidence of perioperative cardiac events in this group was 2%. Seventy-seven patients (Group B) had an abnormal (n = 41) or an inadequate (n = 36) thallium stress test and most (n = 61) then underwent coronary angiography. The use of beta-blockers was the only predictor of an abnormal or inadequate thallium stress test (10 of 64 versus 27 of 77, chi 2 = 6.66, p less than or equal to 0.025). Forty-three percent (26 of 61 in Group B) of patients with inadequate or abnormal thallium stress tests had significant coronary artery disease on cardiac catheterization. The perioperative risk of cardiac events was not different in Group A versus Groups B, C, and D combined. Survival of Group A and B patients was not different but was significantly longer than that of Group C patients (p less than 0.001). Thallium stress testing was less expensive than cardiac catheterization ($1,000 versus $4,000 to $5,000). CONCLUSIONS: Thallium stress testing allowed 45% of patients to avoid cardiac catheterization before renal transplantation. Discontinuing beta-blockers before thallium stress tests may improve exercise performance. The risk of perioperative cardiac events after transplantation was low and not different among patient groups. The relatively low predictive value of thallium stress testing for significant coronary artery disease and perioperative cardiac events in diabetic patients with end-stage renal disease suggests the need for the development of a more cost-effective, noninvasive screening test for this patient population.

Adult↗

Influence of beta-adrenergic stimulation and contraction frequency on rat heart interstitial adenosine.

Adenosine (ADO) has an antiadrenergic action in the heart that causes an attenuation of contractile and metabolic responses elicited by beta-adrenergic stimulation. The effect of an increase in oxygen consumption elicited by either beta-adrenergic stimulation or an increase in contraction frequency on interstitial fluid and coronary effluent ADO levels was investigated in isolated perfused isovolumically contracting rat hearts. ADO in left ventricular surface transudates and coronary effluents was rendered fluorescent with chloroacetaldehyde, and the formed ethenoadenosine derivative was quantitated with high-performance liquid chromatography fluorescence detection. Heart preparation integrity was verified by determining the activities of lactate dehydrogenase and ADO deaminase in the transudates. Isoproterenol (10(-8) M) elicited a 45% increase in oxygen consumption and a 54% increase in developed left ventricular pressure in hearts paced at 240 beats/min. With isoproterenol the control transudate ADO concentration (304 pmol/ml) increased 493%, and the control effluent ADO concentration (48 pmol/ml) increased 259%. Increasing the contraction frequency from 180 to 300 beats/min in the presence of 10(-6) M propranolol increased oxygen consumption by 45% and decreased left ventricular pressure by 29%. With the increase in contraction frequency, the transudate ADO concentration did not increase significantly. However, the ADO concentration in the effluent was an average of 269% greater in hearts contracting at the higher frequency. Increasing the contraction frequency of hearts treated with both 10(-6) M propranolol and 10(-5) M atropine also had no significant effect on the level of transudate ADO. The effluent level of ADO increased only 78%. Levels of ADO in transudates were not significantly affected by mesothelial cell metabolism. These results suggest that the beta-adrenergic stimulation the interstitial level of ADO in the heart increases to levels that are sufficient to manifest its antiadrenergic effects. Furthermore, there is not always a correlation between the levels of ADO found in the interstitial and effluent fluid compartments.

Adenosine↗

Increased myocardial adenosine production and reduction of beta-adrenergic contractile response in aged hearts.

The contractile response of the aged adult heart to beta-adrenergic stimulation is known to be reduced compared with the young adult heart. Since endogenous adenosine exerts an antiadrenergic action in the heart, this study was undertaken to determine if the basal endogenous level of myocardial adenosine increases with age and whether this increase mediates the reduced responsiveness of aged heart to beta-adrenergic stimulation. Young (3-5 months) and aged (12-22 months) Sprague-Dawley adult rat hearts of CD and SD stock were perfused at constant pressure and paced at 270 contractions/min. The two age groups had a similar level of +dP/dtmax (index of contractility) under control conditions. Adenosine release into the coronary effluent was 30 +/- 3 nmol/min/g dry wt from young and 54 +/- 9 nmol/min/g dry wt from aged hearts. Inosine release was also greater from the aged hearts. Isoproterenol (10(-8) M) stimulation increased contractile state by 113% in young hearts and only 69% in aged hearts. Isoproterenol further increased the adenosine and inosine release from both age groups. Theophylline (5 x 10(-5) M), an adenosine antagonist, prevented the difference in the contractile response to isoproterenol stimulation between the young and aged hearts. Elevation of external calcium from 2 to 4 mM increased contractility equally in both age groups without influencing adenosine release. Myocardial oxygen consumption, coronary effluent PO2, oxygen supply-demand ratio, and lactate release were similar for both age groups, indicating that under the conditions studied the elevated release of adenosine by the aged hearts was not due to hypoxia. Aged (10-14 months) adult guinea pig hearts also displayed a reduced responsiveness to the isoproterenol stimulation and released more adenosine compared with young (3-4 months) adult guinea pig hearts. These findings suggest that enhanced adenosine levels that are present in the aged myocardium are responsible, in part, for the reduced contractile responsiveness of the older adult heart to beta-adrenergic stimulation.

Adenosine↗

The adenosine Ri agonist, phenylisopropyladenosine, reduces high affinity isoproterenol binding to the beta-adrenergic receptor of rat myocardial membranes.

Adenosine attenuates beta-adrenergic receptor mediated activation of adenylate cyclase in myocardial membranes via adenosine Ri receptors. The effects of adenosine analogs on the binding characteristics of beta-adrenergic receptors were examined in the present study utilizing rat ventricular membranes treated with adenosine deaminase. In 125I-cyanopindolol/isoproterenol competitive binding experiments phenylisopropyladenosine (PIA) significantly increased the IC50 for isoproterenol from 48 +/- 6 nM to 140 +/- 48 nM and steepened the slope of the competition curves from -0.56 +/- 0.03 to -0.90 +/- 0.21. Computer analysis of these curves indicated that binding of isoproterenol to the high affinity state of the beta-adrenergic receptor was eliminated in the presence of PIA. PIA had no effects in the presence of GPP(NH)P. 2-chloroadenosine, a less specific Ri agonist, caused smaller increases in IC50 and slope, without significantly affecting high affinity binding. 2',5'-dideoxyadenosine, a P-site agonist, had no significant effects on isoproterenol binding. During the time course of the competitive binding experiments the membranes displayed isoproterenol-sensitive adenylate cyclase activity in the absence of added GTP. These data suggest that adenosine attenuates catecholamine-induced activation of adenylate cyclase via Ri receptors by decreasing the ability of beta-adrenergic agonists to promote the formation of a high affinity complex composed of the agonist, receptor and stimulatory guanine nucleotide binding protein.

Adenosine↗

Measurement by fluorescence of interstitial adenosine levels in normoxic, hypoxic, and ischemic perfused rat hearts.

An improved assay was used to investigate the effects of hypoxia or ischemia on interstitial fluid and coronary venous effluent levels of adenosine in isolated perfused nonworking rat hearts. The adenosine in 5- to 10-microliter samples of left ventricular epicardial surface transudates and coronary effluents was reacted with chloroacetaldehyde, and the fluorescent derivative (1,N6-ethenoadenosine) was quantitated using high pressure liquid chromatography and fluorescence detection. Hearts responding to hypoxia could be separated into two groups. In one group of hearts, the control (normoxic) transudate and effluent adenosine concentrations were 94 +/- 24 and 41 +/- 6 pmol/ml, respectively. These values increased by 118 and 96%, respectively, with 5 minutes of hypoxia (30% O2), and returned to control levels 5 minutes after resumption of normoxia. In a second group of hearts, the normoxic control levels of adenosine in the transudates (42 +/- 7 pmol/ml) and coronary effluents (62 +/- 17 pmol/ml) were increased with hypoxia by 174 and 1,178%, respectively. However, the transudate levels continued to rise for 5 minutes after resumption of normoxic perfusion while effluent levels fell. In another series of hearts, global ischemia for 30 seconds elicited an elevation of transudate adenosine levels by 362 to 641% above control (58 +/- 15 pmol/ml) as determined 30 seconds after resumption of perfusion flow.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adenosine↗